NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Gum disease -- also referred to
as periodontal disease -- and the loss of teeth are
nontraditional risk factors that are independently associated
with chronic kidney disease, according to the results of a new
study.

"Chronic kidney disease is a public health problem that is
undiagnosed in a significant number of those affected in the
United States," Dr. Monica A. Fisher, of Case Western Reserve
University, Cleveland, Ohio, and colleagues write in the
American Journal of Kidney Diseases. Recent reports of
nontraditional risk factors, such as periodontal disease, lack
of education and poor health care utilization, have been linked
with chronic kidney disease.

Fisher and her associates used data from the Third National
Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to identify 12,947
adults who had information on kidney function and at least one
risk factor. In addition to periodontal status, the
investigators looked at other traditional and nontraditional
risk factors.

The prevalence of chronic kidney disease was 3.6 percent.
Overall, 6.0 percent of the population had periodontal disease,
10.5 percent had missing teeth, 23.5 percent had hypertension,
and 36.4 percent were obese.

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The researchers found that subjects with periodontal
disease and those with missing teeth were nearly twice as
likely to have chronic kidney disease (60 percent and 85
percent, respectively) compared with those without these risk
factors.

As more studies examine the role of periodontal disease in
chronic kidney disease, data will accumulate to support or
refute the inclusion of periodontal therapy to reduce the
growing number of those with kidney disease, Fisher and
colleagues conclude.

More research is needed to better understand this
association and if this information can be used to help
decrease the incidence, progression, and complications of
chronic kidney disease.